Metallic structure



J. B. HUNTER METALLIC STRUCTURE Filed Nov. 19, 1936 Nov. 14, 1939.

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e7 26 3 39 zo" .y j mmfwwwmwmnM/w.. .wmuwhmmmwwnmmf F j akonl Q Patented Nov. 14, 1939 UNITED STATES METALLIC STRUCTURE James B. Hunter, Quincy, Mass., assignor to Bethlehem Shipbuilding Corporation, Ltd., a corporation of Delaware Application November 19, 1936, Serial No. 111,575

4 Claims. (Cl. 189-34) My invention relates to the fabrication of reinforced cellular or double panels or sheets for use in building deck-houses, decks, and bulkheads for ships, brick pans for boilers, etc.

An object of my invention is to provide a panel oi this kind in which the ratio of the strength to the weight is relatively high, in which the parts are so constructed and arranged as to permit of easy assembly by spot welding, thereby removing weight and oost problems.

It is a further object of my invention to provide a stainless steel panelling which is especially adapted to be assembled at the plant of manufacture, transported to the place of construction, and

there easily fastened into position.

Another object of my invention is to replace the single heavy plates, which have heretofore been put to the above uses, with by double panelling.

Still another object of my invention is to provide a cellular panel that has, by virtue of its construction, inherent insulating value.

The novel features of my invention will be more fully understood from the following description and claims taken with the drawing, in which:

Fig. l is a top plan View of my panelling constructed in accordance With my invention;

Fig. 2 is a section taken on line 2-2 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a section taken on line 3 3 of Fig. l, and

Fig. 4 is a section of a modification of my invention.

Referring to the drawing more in detail, IU indicates a strut or framework member of a structure of which my panelling forms an essential part. This strut member lll is provided with a web l I and a flange l2 and may be the framing for the Walls, floor or ceiling of said structure. Welded to web l l by arc-welding is shown a face plate I3, which is particularly adaptable as a support for my novel panels. The plate I3 is provided with depending flanges i4 and l5 which contribute to additional stiffness. To the face plate I3 are attached boundary angles i6 and l1 which are provided with horizontally extending legs I3 5 and lll and depending legs 2li and 2 l, respectively.

This attachment I accomplish preferably by means of rivets 22 as shown in Figs. l, 2 and 3, but arc-welding can be employed as shown at 23 in Fig. 4. It should be also understood that the ,-0 boundary angles may be replaced by any other suitable structure such as a box beam or stiiTener. Thin outer sheets 2li are spotwelded near their marginal edges at points 25 to the horizontally extending legs i8 and i9 oi boundary angles i6 and il and the flanges 2l of the inner sheets 2B are spotwelded at points 28 to the depending legs 2li and 2l of the boundary angles. To space apart and reinforce sheets 24 and 2E I provide stiffeners 29 which may be channels, as shown in the draw- 60 ing, Z-bars, I-beams or any other desirable shape.

These stiffeners are spotwelded at points 3D at predetermined distances apart to sheets 24 and 26. The boundary angles I6 and Il act as assembling members in the setting up of my panel units on shipboard or elsewhere, and also accomplish another object, namely, completely sealing the unit. Instead of providing the sheets 26 with flanges separate angle members may be used to connect the sheets 26 to the boundary member.

It has heretofore been the practice, when constructing deckhouses Jfor ships, brick pans for boilers, ship bulkheads,v and decks, to use a single plate structure. This involved using a heavy plate so as to obtain the strength necessary for such a purpose. The ideal and essential construction in either shipbuilding or airplane building is a very strong and a very light one and therefore my panel is indeed a vital step forward in the development of these trades. It Will'be readily seen that my double panel construction, reinforced at intervals by my stiffeners is a very strong one, and strength may be easily increased by merely deepening the stiffeners Without materially adding weight.

In practicing my invention where it is imperative that the strongest and lightest material available be used I have found that those steels known as austenitic steels, for example, a steel containing approximately 18% chromium, 8% nickel, and below .10% carbon to be especially useful for the construction of my panel structure. By austenitic I mean'steels which have the said ingredients in solid solution, that is, do not form compounds with the iron but dissolve in it and therefore these steels have the desirable property for structural work of being substantially noncorrosive when exposed to weather, sea water and even to some acids; and of developing a high tensile strength when cold worked, and a marked resistance to fatigue. In fact they are capable of developing a tensile strength of 150,000 to 200,000 pounds per square inch. By reason of their attainable strength and resistance to corrosion, these steels lend themselves'admirably to structural uses and especially in structures which are exposed to the weather or subjected to considerable vibrations, and more especially where great strength with minimum weight is an important factor, as in deckhouse construction.

In the Welding of such materials I prefer spotat the plant Where spot-welding units are available and transported to the place of installation and there easily secured into place.

The steel which is used in making sheets 24 and 26 and boundary angles I6 and I'I is preferably of the approximate chemical composition outlined above where corrosion resisting structures are required and is cold rolled from ingots made by the crucible or electric furnace process in order toobtain a high-grade, pure alloy, and preferably should not be heated before or during fabrication. The inner and outer sheets 24 and 26 respectively and the stifeners 29 are coldworked in a manner well known in the art to the proportions shown in the drawing so as to bring out their most desirable physical properties and structural advantages. They are highly polished to enhance their corrosion-resisting properties. Mild steel, however, can be used for purposes which do not require a corrosion-resisting metal.

In assembling my panel structure as shown in the drawing at the plant of manufacture into portable units, I dispose stifeners 29 preferably in parallel relationship intermediate the inner sheet 26, which is provided with flanges 2? at its marginal edges, and the outer sheet 2li and spotweld them thereto at predetermined distances apart at points 3B. The stilieners 29 as heretofore stated may be of any desired shape, such as Z-bars, I-beams, etc., and may beso fabricated as to provide much deeper spacing between the sheets to furnish additional strength without adding materially to the weight of the whole.

The marginal edge of the outer sheet 24 is then placed in overlapping relationship with the leg I3 of the boundary angle IE5 which at the same time brings the ange ZI of the inner sheet 426 in opposed relationship with the depending leg 2li of the boundary angle I6. I then weld the sheets to the boundary angle at these contact points by automatically timed spot-welds 28. It can be easily seen that the boundary angle IS thus completely seals the panel and that the structure has insulating value as one of its characteristics. The panel, however, may be filled with mineral wool or other insulating material and the stieners `28 are brought into use to retain it. It should be notedthat the boundary angle canbe replaced by part of a box beam or other structure to serve the same purpose.

My unit as built up can now be taken on board ship or wherever its use is called for and is ready to be set into place, that is, as walls, flooring or ceiling. If the T-shaped strut members ID already form the framework of, for instance, a deckhouse, the face plates i3 are arc-welded to them to provide supports for the units and form a joining surface therefor. These plates are also of austenitic stainless steel, in order to defeat corrosion which would otherwise occur if an ordinary I-beam structure were used. As it is well known in the structural trade that corrosion results from electrolytic action between two different adjoining metals, I strive to make the connected surfaces of the two different metals as small as possible where it of necessity occurs, as witness the end of the web II of the strut IIJ in contact with the face plate I3. The face plates I3 are provided with depending flanges I4 and I5, which increase the stiffness of the structure. My panel units are then placed in position with the legs IB and I9 of the boundary angle engaging the outer surface of the face plates I3 and the legs 20 and 2I substantially parallel to the outer face of the flanges I4 and I5, respectively, and are connected to the face plates I3 by suitable means, such as rivetting, arc-welding, etc., thus forming the floor, ceiling, etc., of the structure.

While I have shown my invention in but one form, it will be obvious to those skilled in the art that it is not so limited but is susceptible of various other changes and modifications without departing from the spirit thereof, and I desire, therefore, that only such limitations shall be placed thereupon as are imposed by the prior art or as are specifically set forth in the appended claims.

Having thus described my invention what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

l. A panel structure comprising a pair of spaced sheets and a boundary member having a plurality of legs, one of said sheets having the portion adjacent its marginal edge bent outwardly from the other sheet and secured to the outer face of one leg of the boundary member, and the other of said sheets having a portion thereof extending partially across the outer face of the other leg of said boundary member and secured thereto.

2. A panel structure comprising a pair of spaced sheets, a plurality of reinforcing members intermediate said sheets, and a boundary member having a plurality of legs, one of said sheets having a portion secured to one leg of said boundary member, and the other of said sheets having a ange at its marginal edge extending in a direction away from the iirst mentioned sheet and secured to the other leg of the boundary member.

3. A panel comprising a pair of spaced sheet members, a boundary member having a plurality of legs and a plurality of reinforcing members .f

intermediate said sheet members and terminating short of the outermost margins of said sheet members, one of said sheets having a flange at its marginal edge adjacent the ends of the reinforcing members extending in a direction away from the other sheet and secured to one leg of the boundary member, and the other sheet having a portion extending beyond the reinforcing members and partially across the face of the other leg of said boundary member and secured thereto.

4. A structure comprising a plurality of strut members, face plates attached to said strut members, and panels connected to said face plates, each of said panels comprising a pair of relatively thin sheets disposed in spaced relation to each other and having a plurality of stiifeners intermediate thereof which terliinate short of the edges of said sheets, one of said sheets being flanged adjacent its ends in a direction extending away from the other sheet, and a boundary member for said sheets, said boundary member comprising a pair of angularly disposed legs, one of said legs lying in a plane substantially parallel to the surface of the sheets and extending beyond the edges of said sheets and connected to the body portion of said face plate and having one of the sheet members connected thereto and the other leg of the boundary member extending at a right angle to the first mentioned leg and engaging the flange of the anged sheet.

JAMES B. HUNTER. 

